The bullet dug into Ricky's left biceps. It hit bone, cracked through half of it, then stopped suddenly. It then proceeded to turn around, to spin and dig into the flesh of it's own accord, before finally resting. The pain was excruciating. This was no feat of mere ballistics, as especially evident from the smirk on Dean's face. He was not quite sure himself if he was just a lousy shot, or had deliberately hit Ricky's arm just to drag out the fight a little.

He began walking forward again, both hands on the gun. The second bullet whistled by Ricky's cheek, drawing a red line across it. As it passed, he could clearly hear a whistling sound coming from the bullet itself, as if spinning or tumbling through the air. The third shot never came, as Dean was momentarily distracted, the walls beginning to melt and turn into water. He knelt and put a hand onto the floor.

"No." he uttered plainly, but sharply. "You do not control this building. You do not control this city. These are works of men, created by sweat and blood and they won't listen to someone as destructive as you."

Dean looked at Ricky with a stare beyond piercing. In accordance to his words, the walls stopped their transformation. Many parts of it still washed away, drenching the floor and their collective feet, but the roof still stood, if only barely. But Ricky had a moment to react.

Liv gave Alistair the finger the whole time he was walking then gliding away. As he disappeared from sight she turned a shade of purple the intensity of which is usually reserved for accessories for obnoxious preteen girls and Easter decorations. Anger, fury, resentment, all boiled inside of her and soon she was brimming with all these roiling emotions. What the fuck was that, Liv?! how could that happen? WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU? Destruction, violence, she needed to wreak some. She turned to the nearest building and closing her eyes ran straight through street facing wall, letting out primal scream.

"Suddenly Frodo noticed that a strange-looking weather-beaten man, sitting in the shadows near the wall, was also listening intently to the hobbit-talk. He had a tall tankard in front of him, and was smoking a long-stemmed pipe curiously carved. His legs were stretched out before him, showing high boots of supple leather that fitted him well, but had seen much wear and were now caked with mud. A travel-stained cloak of heavy dark-green cloth was drawn close about him, and in spite of the heat of the room he wore a hood that overshadowed his face; but the gleam of his eyes could be seen as he watched the hobbits."

The battle inside this unstable building reached a boiling point. Dean actually managed to wing Ricky a small bit, but the structural integrity of this place is no longer certain.

Damian has to leave, if not for safety, for the fact that he was almost seen by Ricky! Without seeing which way Ricky went, Damian snakes through the empty dusty halls to the back of the building before reaching a ladder and a catwalk. The catwalk leads to the outer scaffolding of the building. "Dean's doing good, he should be able to handle that clown. Though... if he makes it out here..."

Damian ponders this vantage point. There's nothing to do but wait for now.

"It's such a fine line between clever and stupid."

The Chronometal Wars, a fan-fiction taking place in the PPGD Universe. Catastrophe is the only certainty.

Ricky held his screams as the bullet rampaged his arm. Right as he hit the ground, he kicked towards Dean. The floor under Dean slid away into thin air, revealing a large drain. The water flushed down into it, and Dean dropped like a fresh load.

Ricky rolled onto his side, unable to ignore the pain. At that point, a strange vibration ran through his head, numbing away the pain throughout his body. His injured limbs were still unable to function, but at least he wasn't in crippling pain. "This is some cruel euphoria.", he noted as he looked up. "This supposed to be some calm before the storm shit, big man?"

Ricky limped out into the open fair ground. It's a good thing the world ended a week before Independence Day, the street fair would've been either packed away or crowded with bodies. Some of the zones weren't completely set up, such as the bouncy house, but still a fantastic stage.

Hero boy shouldn't take long to follow. Kimimaro would be right behind him, like a confused pup. Then there's the mind reader, I know I heard him, got a glimpse of him too. He headed into their first stage. The wondrous Maze of Mirrors. "You do not control this building. These are works of men. They won't listen to you.", Ricky mocked Dean. "You don't control me. I was the work of a man and a woman. You don't see people fixing me."

Dean's back hit the drain with a loud 'clang'. A sound of both anguish and irritation flew through his gritted teeth. In two moves he got on his feet and climbed up the jagged sides of the ruined floor. He saw just a shadow of Ricky entering the Maze of Mirrors and heard his words echo after him.

A thought flew through Dean's head. Ricky had a point. But now was not the time to test that theory out.

He swiftly followed into the maze, but stopped short of the entrance. Flickering lights mixed with the red reflections of the sky, shadows and contours made it impossible to orient. It was becoming clear that Ricky was all about genre, yet Dean knew this trope. And he had no desire to play that game.

"You know, you picked this arena." he half-shouted into the maze in whichever direction Ricky was likely to be. "You could have chosen a place where I'd be at an disadvantage. Instead you chose the most artificial of all."

And with that, Dean placed a hand on one of the mirrors and uttered a simple command: Break.

First a crack on it's surface. Then the surface exploded, thousand shards of glass flying through the air. The other mirrors shortly followed suit.

Hit by a little glass himself +1, thouroughly humiliated +1, temporarily blinded, +2, deeply lacerated, can only fight one more round +3

This guy's ruining all the fun in this.Ricky had hoped to lure out a few more spectators before the finale, but the minimum will have to do.

He attempted to turn the mirrors immediately around him into a metallic dome with a single door.With the strange numbing sensation, he expected his death soon. At the very least, it wouldn't be physically painful, though the others wouldn't know.

The mirrors barely moved as Ricky tried to transform the mirrors. Their shape remained fixed. Dean had one arm stretched in front of him, his hand completely tense. He was the one keeping them there, negating Ricky's power. Their powers were similar, but when it came to control, Dean's command was absolute.

The glass kept bursting around Ricky, defenseless. Dean was close enough to be hit too, but the glass simply deviated their course around him. Meanwhile, Ricky was being cut from all angles. Red gashes sprang up all over his skin, a hundred cuts before the first drop of blood even hit the ground. One shard went in his left ear, followed shortly by pain and a loud ringing noise from it. His eyelids were flossed and shredded before his pubils too were cut. But all the shards were small, non-lethal, not piecing below the skin. Except for one.

With a fleshy sound something entered below Ricky's neck. Something bigger. There was too much pain for it to properly register. The rain of glass subsided, what had seemed like an eternity ended. The quarter meter long shard still sat in. Dean gave Ricky a stern look.

"Dig."

The shard etched five centimeters further into Ricky's spine. More than sufficient. This he could feel. Before losing feeling of all else. He did not lose fall over, as much as his legs simply collapsed under him. Face down in broken mirrors, his neck the only thing he could move.

Dean walked over slowly, placing a foot on the large shard. This he could feel.

"You know, I thought I was gonna kill you." he said, trying to sound calm, but heavy breaths revealing the contained rage. "But considering 7 billion people died quite recently, both good and bad, that seems too tame to inflict on you."

The warm slices covered Ricky, wrapping him like a cocoon. He knew this would happen. Things normally deviated from him, the unexpected always caught him. This time though, he knew the finale would go his way. Fate had almost taken everything. Almost. He just had to raise his voice loud enough so the others could hear.

He turned his head to the side. "Kill?-" He coughed violently and threw up a bit of blood."Ah, you're far too late for that party. I was dying for years before this. Seeing my kids dead is what did it. You though."His smile streamed crimson. "You died some time ago too. 'How terrible to destroy the work of men', to distort them, except when it's convenient for you? Yes, I like that. I hope you last, knowing the next god is as ironic as this one would be nice."

There was a wry, angry expression on Dean's face for a moment. Then he sighed deeply and lifted his foot off the shard.

"You're right... Really, good points. I'm destructive too." Dean's voice was quivering a bit, suddenly sounding very fragile. "But I don't care about this dead city. I care about the people that used to live here, and there's nothing I can do for them now. Except to make the next world worthy of their sacrifice."

He squatted down in front of Ricky, feeling a bit foolish when he realized he wouldn't be able to make eye contact.

"I don't know what you had planned for it, and I don't need to." His voice turned stern again, almost reprimanding. "Don't for a second think your personal tragedies justify what you've done or what you were gonna do. Plenty of people experience pain, suffering, sorrow. All the ones still alive now certainly have. Most move on. They don't become indifferent lunatics."

He stood up again. Another deep breath.

"But I guess I've become one too. I'm not doing this for justice, I have to own up to that." Dean kicked the shard, Ricky's leg spasming in reply. "I'm doing it for revenge and that's not the same thing. And I'm gonna leave you here for the same reason."

"You have to serve justice to take revenge. I wonder how long your friends will follow you, or think they can run under your nose. The people who came for you waited, I wonder if they wanted you to die first, before finishing me. Like your girlfriend wanted before."

The provoking words probably won't get a response, but he was dying. He decided making his last moments more interesting was worth a shot.

And like that, it all seemed to draw ever closer to an end. Damian could see everything, hear everything, feel everything going on.

The game was about to be down one player, everyone's goals were about to get one step closer.

It felt like an oddly spiritual moment. Damian was furious that his bones were destroyed by Ricky, yet on the other hand, he had great fear in helplessness. Ricky may be dead by hour's end, or perhaps hold on for as long as he needs to, all without the enveloping warmth of justice, Damian realizes this. This wasn't for justice, this was for revenge, but Damian guesses that Dean just wanted it a little more than he did. This was Dean's kill, not his.

"Enjoy this, for however long you need to." Damian says, blasting a golden hole in space and falling into it. The game is not over, as a matter of fact, Damian feels as though it's only just beginning. Now that the common enemy is gone, how will everyone's ambitions play out? This 'is' the entire world we're talking about. Once the line of good an evil starts becoming blurred, friends may turn on each other, and only the most ambitious will survive.

Luna had been following, hiding in the shadows and watching the entire scene. Seeing the one who killed her lover dying, she stepped forward. She emerged from the shadows with both hands pointed at him, all her fingers aimed at his torso. "You killed her." she cried, tears starting to run down her cheeks. She stepped closer and closer until she was right standing beside him, her fingers aimed at his heart.

Innuendo Squad's Resident Lesbian

I the merc with a mouth only more badass.

Mother of darkness, mother of light, earth beneath us, soul in flight, songs of love and love of life, guide us to our heart.We all come from the Goddess and to her we shall return like a drop of rain flowing to the ocean.

Looking up at Dean she then realized what he was doing. "Yes, a slow and painful death is what he needs." She aimed her right hand at Ricky's legs, nodding to Dean.

If he nodded back, she would shoot Ricky's legs with her bones.

If he shook his head, she would lower her arm and try thinking of another way to increase Ricky's pain.

If he didn't reply, she would wait a bit longer. If he still didn't reply, she opened fire on his legs.

Innuendo Squad's Resident Lesbian

I the merc with a mouth only more badass.

Mother of darkness, mother of light, earth beneath us, soul in flight, songs of love and love of life, guide us to our heart.We all come from the Goddess and to her we shall return like a drop of rain flowing to the ocean.

"If you want my death to be slow and painful, take a seat and keep talking to me."

Ricky heard the steps Dean took. Each one getting further and further away. He then said in a voice, just low enough so that only Luna could hear, "I killed...her? You sure? The boy walking away told me he'd kill you all after I weaken you all with the bomb. Guess he double crossed me."

She froze amd looked at Dean. He didn't know what Ricky meant but doubted he was telling the truth. She didn't completely trust Dean either but had thought he and Carrie were friends. Looking back at Ricky, she frowned. "Then I'll take care of his ugly ass later." she replied, shooting at his shoulders. "I don't care who you are or what you can do, you killed Carrie and for that, you will pay."

Innuendo Squad's Resident Lesbian

I the merc with a mouth only more badass.

Mother of darkness, mother of light, earth beneath us, soul in flight, songs of love and love of life, guide us to our heart.We all come from the Goddess and to her we shall return like a drop of rain flowing to the ocean.

Ricky felt a movement through his shoulders. He couldn't really feel it, but he knew something happened. Not that it mattered anymore, his entire body has been crudely skinned apart. His muscles and nerves were shredded, and he was still mysteriously high.

"I will pay? I've got about 3.50, in quarters, in my back pocket. Besides that, the boy over there took away your revenge. And, now he's commanding you like a bitch, just like your girlfriend. Letting me cling to my life, making you watch, unable to do anything to truly avenge anyone."

In a fit of rage, she clenched her fists, causing both of them to sprout Wolverine-like claws, before slamming them in his chest on either side of his heart. "I don't care who kills you." she lied. "As long as you die slow and painful." She stood, leaving the claws in him, as she began following Dean. After a few steps, she turned to Ricky once more, still crying. She looked to Dean, wondering if what Ricky said was really true. She knew people couldn't be trusted, especially boys and especially not in this world now. "Dean." she said, crossing her arms. "Wait up." She jogged to catch up to him.

[if he waits for her] Once she caught up with him, she looked up at him with a sigh. "Ricky told me you had planned to kill the rest of us when his bomb went off. Is that true?"

[if he tries running] She sighed, stopping at the place he had been standing when she had called to him. He wouldn't answer her questions and, in her mind at least, that made him just as guilty as Ricky.

Innuendo Squad's Resident Lesbian

I the merc with a mouth only more badass.

Mother of darkness, mother of light, earth beneath us, soul in flight, songs of love and love of life, guide us to our heart.We all come from the Goddess and to her we shall return like a drop of rain flowing to the ocean.

Dean had just reached the door, broken glass crunching beneath his soles as he walked. He drew a deep breath of the somewhat-fresh air, trying to get the smell of blood out of his nose. He was calmer now, the rage had subsided, but he did not feel particularly better in any way. Still, he could find it to be amicabable for a moment. He stopped by the door frame and leaned on it until Luna caught up.

"Would you believe me if I said 'no'?" his voice was hushed, his face somber and fatigued. "I certainly wouldn't tell you now if I'd planned that. But no, I didn't. You were an ally then, and now, and I had no reason to hurt any of you. Hell, I haven't had a coherent plan since this all began. That was Carrie's job."

Dean eyed luna for a second, gauging her reaction to him mentioning that name. He held up his left-hand, looking at the stripes of crimson red running down over it.

"But I've realized something..." "I will do what is necessary for the next world. I will kill you if you're in the way of that." he said matter-of-factly, without a trace of threat. "For now... I don't think you are."

She relaxed a little when he said no. Then she felt a twang of heartbreak at the mention of Carrie. She knew he was her friend, or at least her ally, and she felt a little guilty for thinking he may have been the reason for her death. She clenched her right hand over her heart as she looked at his left. "If all you want for the new world is peace then there is no need for us to fight." With that, she turned back to Ricky. "What should we do with him. Leave him? Torture him more for what he did to us? End his pathetic and miserable existence?"

Innuendo Squad's Resident Lesbian

I the merc with a mouth only more badass.

Mother of darkness, mother of light, earth beneath us, soul in flight, songs of love and love of life, guide us to our heart.We all come from the Goddess and to her we shall return like a drop of rain flowing to the ocean.

Alistair returned to the spot he had last seen the group. He remembered seeing Ricky in the car and followed the street in the direction they had chased him. With a sigh, he saw the broken lamppost. "They were here." He headed through the door, following a trail of blood that ended halfway there. From there, he followed the trail of destruction from the fighting. He eventually found Luna and Dean talking by a doorway and Ricky on the floor, dying if not already dead. Hearing her questions to Dean, he decided to interrupt. "Leave this pathetic man to wither." he sighed, walking past them. "Let's find the others... if they're still alive."

Now severely regretting having numbed most of Ricky's body, Dean tried to ignore the whistling, instead glaring a little at Alistair.

"Yeah, that was the plan. I have a hope that most of the bad eggs are gone now..." He gave the light tap of his foot, and a very large splinter of wood sprang up underneath Ricky's face and almost pierced his chin. Hopefully enough to make him quiet for just a second. "... So we can talk the rest of this apocalypse out."

He started walking back the way he had come, back towards the road, although take a detour around the building of circus equipment and dead clowns. Before he had gotten far though, he turned towards Alistair and gave a surprised glance.